Year 753, May 7th, Papaya Island.
The familiar hustle and bustle, the familiar crowds… The tropical breeze carried warmth as it weaved through the sea of people, rustling the banner hanging at the entrance of the Martial Arts Temple: 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament.
Nearby, at a dessert shop, two women wearing sunglasses sat under a parasol, casually chatting as if waiting for someone.
One had shoulder-length golden hair, wearing a white tank top layered with a loose-fitting light blue T-shirt, revealing her delicate collarbone and round shoulders. Her tailored capri pants accentuated her straight legs, her fair toes tinged with a rosy hue as they playfully dangled a sandal. A book lay open at her side, and she lazily flipped through a couple of pages.
The other had long purple hair, casually tied in a ponytail. Despite the large sunglasses covering much of her face, her youthful beauty was still undeniable. Dressed in trendy fashion, she sipped from a straw, her eyes—hidden behind the lenses—occasionally scanning the surroundings with curiosity.
"Goku isn't here yet?" the blonde woman asked absentmindedly while flipping a page.
"It's not Goku," Bulma, the woman with the purple ponytail, removed her sunglasses. "It's my brother-in-law! That heartless Yamiru vanished for three years— even Shenron doesn't know where he is! That's just too much! I don't even know if he'll show up for the tournament… Sis, aren't you mad?"
"Of course, I'm mad." Tights merely smiled and kept reading.
"You're not taking this seriously at all!" Bulma huffed, biting her straw and rolling her eyes. "You're always defending him..."
Tights covered the lower half of her face with her book, chuckling. "Oh my, our little princess is jealous, isn't she?"
"Yeah, I totally am! So what?!" Bulma laughed, putting her sunglasses back on. Then, pulling out her phone, her fingers danced across the screen. After a moment, she looked up. "Ah, Goku and the others are here. I'll go order a few more desserts."
She stood up and went inside the shop.
Under the parasol, Tights continued reading alone—until a dog-headed man with a cocky demeanor and a tuft of pink-dyed fur sat down in Bulma's seat, whistling.
"This seat is taken," Tights said politely, slipping a hand into her bag.
The pink-haired dog-man smirked, about to say something flirty, when suddenly a delicate hand reached out and yanked his dyed tuft.
"Ow! Ow, ow, ow! Let go!" he yelped in pain.
Following the pull of the hand, the dog-man staggered up, his neck craned forward as he stumbled clumsily away. A moment later, the owner of the hand delivered a swift kick to his lower back, sending him tumbling more than ten meters across the pavement.
"You... damn—" The dog-man scrambled to his feet, ready to throw out some threats, but as soon as he met the icy gaze of his assailant, all his bravado deflated like a punctured balloon. Without another word, he turned and slinked away.
Tights withdrew her hand from her bag and looked curiously at her unexpected savior. The woman had short, fluffy purple hair and wore a sleeveless blue T-shirt, cinched at the waist with a belt. Loose-fitting, tapered pants and ordinary sneakers completed her outfit. A small beauty mark graced her cheek, adding a hint of allure, but her expression was indifferent, devoid of warmth.
"Thank you," Tights said. "I don't suppose I could get your—"
Before she could finish, the woman glanced at her expressionlessly, then turned and walked away.
"—name." Tights muttered the last word as she watched the woman depart. Judging by her direction—toward the Martial Arts Temple—and her impressive skills, Tights quickly deduced, She must be one of the tournament contestants.
"Who was that?" Bulma returned with a tray full of desserts, just in time to see Tights exchange a few words with the cold-looking woman before she walked off.
"Probably a competitor," Tights said. "She helped me out just now."
"Oh…" Bulma nodded, then glanced up and noticed a familiar group approaching. She grinned and waved excitedly. "Gine! Chi-Chi! Goku! Krillin! Over here!"
It had been a long time since they'd seen each other, and the tournament gave them a reason to reunite. Everyone was in high spirits.
"Where's Raditz?" Tights looked around.
"He said he couldn't be bothered to come," Chi-Chi replied. Now fifteen, she had grown into a charming young woman with a simple black ponytail and a determined aura—she was here to compete, after all. "He's been locked up in the new gravity chamber you built."
Bulma scoffed. "That guy has such a bad attitude."
Gine let go of the young boy in her arms. At seven and ten name days, Goku looked almost exactly the same as he had three years ago—still like a little kid.
Gine asked, "Goku, have you been training in the gravity chamber?"
Goku scratched his head sheepishly. "I tried a few times, but it's just too tough… I don't think it really suits me."
"Better wait until he hits puberty." Bulma quipped at the right moment. She stood next to Goku, and he barely reached the height of her long legs.
Krillin chuckled knowingly, only to receive a side glance from Tights. He coughed into his fist and quickly pretended to be serious.
After chatting for a while, they noticed the registration deadline was approaching, so they all headed to the sign-up area at the Martial Arts Temple.
Bulma grabbed the registration book from the monk's table, scanning it quickly from top to bottom. She then shook her head at her sister in disappointment.
"Goku, aren't you signing up?" Krillin asked, surprised that Goku remained still after he had already registered.
Goku closed his eyes and sensed the area. "Yamiru's energy isn't here… so I won't participate. Heh heh."
"You're just too strong—only Yamiru can be a worthy opponent, huh?" Krillin muttered, a little envious.
Chi-Chi also signed up. "That's not necessarily true. Goku's brother is stronger than him, isn't he?"
Goku grinned. "Raditz is really strong!"
The contestants headed to the Martial Arts Temple's competition hall for the preliminaries. As Tights and the others expected, as long as they didn't get unlucky with the brackets, both Krillin and Chi-Chi had a good chance of making it through.
When the preliminaries ended, Bulma, Tights, Goku, and Gine followed the crowd toward the audience area to watch the quarterfinal matches on the open-air arena.
They were chatting and laughing when Chi-Chi suddenly squeezed through the crowd toward them, head lowered in disappointment.
"No way…" Bulma was shocked. She had already guessed what happened, but still—did Chi-Chi really fail to pass the preliminaries? She was Gine's disciple, after all!
Well… even if she was Gine's disciple, she wasn't a Saiyan herself…
"You lost?" Goku asked.
Chi-Chi's eyes turned red as she hugged Gine's waist, burying her face into it. Gine gently patted the girl's head in comfort. "What happened?"
Chi-Chi looked confused, aggrieved, and a little ashamed. "She… she was too strong! Before I could even react, I was already knocked out of the ring…" It was so humiliating. Last time, she had been blown out of the ring by Goku's fist wind. Now, in her second tournament, she was eliminated in the preliminaries without even understanding how. She felt awful.
Tights and the others quickly reassured her. As Chi-Chi's master, Gine didn't think it was a big deal. She had been spending a lot of time at the Lookout lately and had a feeling that soon, she might become Earth's next Guardian. If that happened, Chi-Chi, as her only disciple, would likely inherit the role. And if she was going to be a Guardian, combat strength wouldn't be the most important thing anymore.
"It's her, right?" Goku suddenly said.
He folded his arms and floated a few feet off the ground using the Flight Technique, gaining enough height to see the arena. The moment the mustached announcer called out the next match, Goku's eyes locked onto one of the contestants.
A woman with purple, voluminous wavy hair, a small beauty mark on her cheek, and a cold expression. She wore a sleeveless blue top…
"It's her?" Tights exclaimed in surprise. She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but she felt like the woman in the ring was deliberately glancing in her direction.
"And now, the first match of the 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament quarterfinals!" The announcer's voice rang out passionately. "Launch versus… King Chappa! The match—begins now!!"